Philly composer Andrea Clearfield’s “SZalon” marks 40 years of music

Though Clearfield trained as a pianist, at home her family played a range of chamber music, with her father on clarinet, mother on piano, and Andrea playing the flute, so it’s not surprising that she was “always interested in gathering around [all styles of] music.” Moving to Philadelphia in September 1986, Clearfield couldn’t find a place featuring the musical variety she craved, so she gathered a group in her home and began her own salon.

Welcome to the SZalon

Surprisingly, her original format has proven a durable one. Nine times a year, Clearfield gathers 10 ensembles or performers who perform for 10 minutes each. They span a wide range of music, providing a “cross-fertilization for audiences and performers that exposes everyone to new sounds, cultures, and styles.” Clearfield says that more than 9,000 performers and 19,000 audience members “have passed through my living room,” making it one of the country’s longest running and most prolific music series.

Each SZalon begins with a community welcome and includes a post-performance Q&A session and a concluding toast. In March 2020, the event was cancelled during the Covid outbreak. But Clearfield quickly created a Zoom event, and the gathering briefly became a “Zalon”. In 2021 she and her dedicated staff designed an interactive system to livestream international performances, creating the current hybrid SZalon that welcomes artists from all over the world.

Volunteers and investors

Everyone who works on the SZalon is a volunteer, 25 in all, including a tech team, stage management, and a house team welcoming in-person guests. In 2003, the gathering outgrew its original space, and moved into Clearfield’s loft-like home in Center City, which she was renting at the time. When the owner put the building up for sale in 2014, 12 passionate investors formed an LLC that purchased it, and Clearfield (enormously grateful for this outpouring of support) is now housed there in perpetuity, along with the SZalon.

The SZalon embraces all kinds of music (and sometimes other art forms) that Clearfield programs a year in advance. Sometimes artists approach her, but the noted composer often finds performers during her extensive travels and residencies, gratified that “performers often travel long distances to play for 10 minutes or perform online at unusual hours in different time zones.”

Celebrating 40 years

The upcoming September 27 SZalon, happening at 7pm ET, is indicative of the event’s range. Clearfield has booked Bill Koutsouros & Friends (Greek music); Valentin Kovalev and Aiwen Zhang (Bijoux Saxophone Duo); Two Wings, Two Biscuits Jazz Quartet: Tony Miceli, Diane Monroe, Tom Kraines & Nimrod Speaks; Kuf Knotz and Christine Elise (soul fusion); Mimi Stillman & Dolce Suono; Noëlle Streuber-Eden and Maria Dell'Orefice; Tamir and Naizel Hargana (traditional Mongolian music); Karlis Bukovskis; The Primavera Fund Alumni Chamber Ensemble; an accordion surprise; and more!

The power of music for a joyful audience

A busy composer with more than 175 works in her ever-expanding catalogue, Clearfield finds that the SZalon actually strengthens her compositional voice: “My belief in the power of music to touch souls has led to a deeper practice of my own.” And artists often tell her that this gathering reminds them why they began their careers, fostering community amid a professional environment that can be competitive or isolating.

Clearfield finds that “people still crave being in a listening space with a joyful and warm audience,” and though the upcoming SZalon reached its in-person capacity several weeks ago, the composer and her team always welcome online attendees to experience this remarkable Philadelphia tradition. Here is the link to join.

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